Major retailers utilize carriers to transport products between various facilities of the retailers. The carriers typically operate on a schedule and there is an expectation that a carrier spend no more than a predetermined amount of time (e.g., 1, 2, or 3 hours) at a supplier facility picking up a load. Generally, when a carrier hauling a load for a retailer is required to wait at a supplier for longer than a predetermined period of time (e.g., 1, 2, 3, or more hours after arrival), the carrier is eligible to file for a detention (i.e., delay) reimbursement request with the retailer in order to get reimbursed for the supplier-associated delay that the carrier was subjected to.
Conventional systems for processing detention reimbursement requests rely on facsimile and/or electronic mail. For example, a supplier typically submits a detention reimbursement request by faxing the retailer, which then notifies the supplier by facsimile that a detention reimbursement request against the supplier has been submitted by a carrier. The supplier then responds by facsimile to the retailer to dispute and/or otherwise comment regarding the carrier's detention reimbursement request, and the retailer then notifies the carrier and the supplier by facsimile regarding the resolution (i.e., credited amount to the retailer and invoiced amount to the supplier) of the carrier's detention reimbursement request. As a result, such conventional systems are complicated due to the many manual steps involved and are subject to human error.
Elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions and/or relative positioning of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of various embodiments of the present invention. Also, common but well-understood elements that are useful or necessary in a commercially feasible embodiment are often not depicted in order to facilitate a less obstructed view of these various embodiments of the present invention. Certain actions and/or steps may be described or depicted in a particular order of occurrence while those skilled in the art will understand that such specificity with respect to sequence is not actually required. The terms and expressions used herein have the ordinary technical meaning as is accorded to such terms and expressions by persons skilled in the technical field as set forth above except where different specific meanings have otherwise been set forth herein.